Planing a much needed trip. My friend really wants to get away for a while so i'm joining him on a little 10 day road trip. Anyone looking to house 2 guys from brooklyn? I'll bring fresh bagels. ;D
Anyway, I need some help on some routes/ things to do/ places to go. Heres the schedule so far
April 15th- Leave around 1pm, make it to DC by 7pm and stay with afriend.
April 16th - wake up around 8-9ish and check out Washington DC, and leave by 11. We are thinking about going through Sky Line Drive and perhaps camping out in Shenandoah National Park, or make our way to the begining of the tail and find a motel or something.
April 17th- ride the tail and make it to jacksonville to stay at another friends house.
April 18th- Kennedy space center to watch the endevours last launch. After launch (around 3pm i think), make it to tallahasse by 9pm and stay with another friend.
April 19th- wake up early and make our way to New Orleans.
April 20th- NEW ORLEANS
April 21th????
April 22nd???
April 23rd????
April 24 be back in brooklyn.
Suggestions HIGHLY requested. Places to visit etc. I do not mind superslabbing it a home if i can be at more places.
yes this is rushed, but i have no choice. I am doing this. My friend took the time off and i bought a ventura rack and new tires for this 3500+mile trip.
if you can squeeze Arkansas do it. Highway 7 from Hot Springs Northbound is incredible but anything surrounding Eureka Springs kicks ass! I have routes for Arkansas and can scan them and send to you. Also, around New Orleans, if you don't have time to go to Arkansas try your hand in and around Kisatchie National Forest. Just be aware that in bayou country you miss a turn and off into the ditch you go, very little run off if any.
no recommendations from me, just wanted to say that that sounds awesome... esp seeing the last launch. if i had the time, i would def do something like this too.
Two hours to check out DC?
Have fun.
Quote from: ducpainter on March 15, 2011, 07:08:52 AM
Two hours to check out DC?
Have fun.
Not likely. There are a few places near the beach where you can "watch" the launch. Good luck getting tickets to watch it at KSC.
Quote from: ducpainter on March 15, 2011, 07:08:52 AM
Two hours to check out DC?
Have fun.
Been to DC 3 times already. Not sure if you think its too much or too little. But i kinda just wanted to sit and eat a sandwich next to Lincoln. :P
Quote from: duccarlos on March 15, 2011, 07:25:16 AM
Not likely. There are a few places near the beach where you can "watch" the launch. Good luck getting tickets to watch it at KSC.
tickets are all sold out already. im assuming you can see the launch from somewhere nearby.
Quote from: He Man on March 15, 2011, 09:09:45 AM
Been to DC 3 times already. Not sure if you think its too much or too little. But i kinda just wanted to sit and eat a sandwich next to Lincoln. :P
<snip>
I thought it was a 'bit' short. :P
I've been there once, and a couple of days wasn't enough to really see much.
Quote from: ducpainter on March 15, 2011, 09:45:26 AM
I thought it was a 'bit' short. :P
I've been there once, and a couple of days wasn't enough to really see much.
+1 Been there a few times and can never really see it all.
Quote from: He Man on March 15, 2011, 09:09:45 AM
tickets are all sold out already. im assuming you can see the launch from somewhere nearby.
There are a few bars close enough that you'll see it once it clears the launch pad. To see the actual launch, you'd need to be within the KSC area, which is locked down. I can ask a few friends that live in the area to recommend a good place to watch it. I might be watching it with you.
That'd be awesome, im looking online for popular places to watch the launch. its a 7:48pm launch and im hoping to be set up by ~2pm somewhere near by.
Yeah, those places get filled up quickly. Keep in mind that the launch might be postponed by a few hours or even a day, so you might need to be flexible. It should not be due to weather since April is pretty dry down here. It might be a good idea to call the places to see if they have a reservation policy for the launches.
http://www.launchphotography.com/Shuttle_Launch_Viewing.html (http://www.launchphotography.com/Shuttle_Launch_Viewing.html)
Blue Ridge Parkway or Tail of the Dragon along the way (or back)? (edit, just noticed your reference to "tail")
Barber Motorsports Park and Motorcycle Museum near Birmingham AL?
BMW Zentrum Museum and manufacturing tour near Spartanburg SC?
Corvette stuff in Bowling Green KY?
What interests do you have other than Ducati? If you go through ATL:
World of Coca Cola is pretty cool
Georgia Aquarium ($$$, but if you like that kind of stuff...???)
Lots of good local restaurants/eats
I can't offer much towards a place to stay, unless you want to share a sofa with a dog, but I'll be more than happy to buy the first round when you guys stop off here in DC. I just posted up in the local board (CAM) that you'll be coming through, so maybe we'll work some kind of festiveness out of it.
recommendation-
you have too much planned for the time frame and distance you are considering,...best laid plans and all that. one or two delays could wreck your whole itinerary. pair down your schedule and build in more time to for relaxation/unexpected stuff.
best of luck regardless.
The Tail of the Dragon is not so bad mid-week but stay away on the weekend.
Quote from: muskrat on March 15, 2011, 05:59:15 PM
The Tail of the Dragon is not so bad mid-week but stay away on the weekend.
This.
How is monday for tail of the dragon? My friends parents are not cool with me +1 staying in their house (he forgot to mention +1) so i am skipping jacksvonille as an overnight stay, and istead just stopping by for lunch so i am aiming to be in the shuttle area by 2-3pm, get a hotel and chill there for the day to watch the launch and leave to tallahassee the next morning or night.
To be honest, the shutle thing is so out of my way, it may not even be worth it.
Monday may be fine but mid week is better for the Dragon. Take the skyway though while there.
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF&msa=0&msid=204512985665054647462.00049ea8c2d24f005c384 (http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF&msa=0&msid=204512985665054647462.00049ea8c2d24f005c384)
thats waht i go so far. Though from Deals Gap to Tallahassee is a LONG stretch of rode that I want to cut in half with some activity. DRKWNG Will see you in DC!
So revised isDay 1: Make it to DC
Leave at 1pm, make it there around 8pm and stay over freinds house, check out dc at night for a bit hangout. Total Miles: 225miles ~5hours according to google maps, so well say 7 hours if we do it nice and relaxed with food and gas stops.
Day 2: Make it to campground @ Blue Ridge Parkway
Wake up around 8am leave at 10ish and make our way to Blue Ridge Parkway, were going to make our way to Wilderness Canoe Campground (http://www.wildernesscanoecampground.com/index.html (http://www.wildernesscanoecampground.com/index.html)). Approximately 6 hours according to Google Maps, so we'll say 9 hours since theres a lot of things to just stop and enjoy. So we get there around 7pm the latest depending on how we feel ( we are next to a highway so we have the option of cutting a few hours out if we feel tired).
Day 3: Wake up at 9am and get on the canoe bus at 10am. Rent a Canoe Class I and Class II rapids ($60 for 2 man canoeing, or $30 for solos). They have 5-10 mile canoe trails. ranging from 2-7 hours depending. We can camp here overnight again and leave in the morning, or leave around 3pm. and make a 5 hour trip to another campsite or stay at a motel.
Day 4: Leave by 10am and Make our way to TAIL OF THE DRAGON!!!! around 2pm Ride it, conquer it, get some stickers and find a place to stay.
I need to make it to tallahassee from here and if there is something to do, that would be great. But its 9 hours google maps time, so 12hour real time wit hfuel food and bullshitting. Its too much. Its only 480miles. but with speed limits. So i wanna find something to do near atlanta and stay the night.
Day 5: Make our way to tallahassee (its superslab boring) Get there and stay with a friend. Hang out with some freinds that go to FSU grad school now.
Day 6: New Orleans
Day 7: New Orleans
Day 8: Jacksonville
Day 9: DC
Day 10: Home
Day 10:
What part of town (DC) are you going to be staying in?
Quote from: He Man on March 17, 2011, 12:44:19 AM
...So i wanna find something to do near atlanta and stay the night.
Day 5: Make our way to tallahassee (its superslab boring)...
Barber Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham is well worth the extra two hours from ATL. From there take I65S to Montgomery then back roads (through Dothan and Bainbridge) to Tallahassee. Breaks up the superslab as well. [thumbsup]
Edit: See this thread - http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=31378.0 (http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=31378.0)
Quote from: Teutonics on March 17, 2011, 06:51:02 AM
Barber Motorcycle Museum in Birmingham is well worth the extra two hours from ATL. From there take I65S to Montgomery then back roads (through Dothan and Bainbridge) to Tallahassee. Breaks up the superslab as well. [thumbsup]
Edit: See this thread - http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=31378.0 (http://www.ducatimonsterforum.org/index.php?topic=31378.0)
But with his schedule he won't have enough time to get past the friendly folks at the door. :P
Be sure to watch "Easy Rider" before you go :D
1) Definitely stop at the Barber Museum NE of Birmingham.
2) I lived along the Gulf Coast (in/between Mobile AL and Port Arthur TX) during the winter of '05-'06 doing environmental work in the wake of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina. The people I met there were among the nicest I've met anywhere in the world.
3) If you need to, the Mobile area is a good place to stop, as it was far enough east to have missed Katrina's wrath and has pretty much everything you'd want/need. Name, and other, hotels (and one of two Hooters in town) are off I-10 (Rts 16/90) in Tillmans Corner or/and off I-65 west of downtown. If you have to shop, most of the name stores you'll be looking for are on/near Airport Blvd - there's a big Walmart in Tillmans Corner. Consider visiting Fairhope, it's is a pretty little town on the east side of Mobile Bay about 30 minutes south of I-10/Spanish Fort.
Parts of the Mississippi coast are still recovering from Katrina, so you may want to consider an overnight stay in the Mobile area before heading west, if it fits your schedule. Travel time from Mobile to NOLA is about 2.5 hours, if I recall corrrectly.
4) But......I'd recommend you consider these stops (chek with AAA to make sure all the roads/ferries are open):
Pensacola, Fla is nice, you can stop at the Navy Base and tour the really cool naval air museum and maybe even see the Blue Angels practicing, then head west through Perdido Key on local roads along the coast towards Gulf Shores, Ala. GS is touristy, so I'd recommend riding through (on Rt 180) and taking the ferry over to Dauphin Island, where the flavor is much more "local" and you should be able to find a relatively cheap place to stay/eat lunch (Barnacle Bills was a regular stop there - not sure if it stlll goes by that name - just north of the circle heading north off the island ) or even keep riding for another half hour (take 193 to 188) and eat in Bayou La Batre. These places are where the real people live....then continue up to I-10 and go westward. Skip Rt 90 going thru Pascagoula and Ocean Springs; Pascagoula is a run-down refinery town and Ocean Springs is mostly residential.
Once in MIssissippi (on I-10), take I-110 south to Biloxi and ride '90' west along the beach....you'll still see some of the damage from Katrina (the eye made landfall just west of Biloxi in Gulfport). Should be able to find lots of small places to stop at and chat up the locals (maybe a Lonely Planet guide available?) - check with AAA to confirm that 90 is open all the way to I-10 above Lake Ponchartrain, which is the way you'll want to enter the NOLA area.
If you ride around the residential, southern parts of NOLA you're likely to still see houses with 'bathtub rings' indicating the water level during the flood. Other than the French Quarter/Garden District/Mardi Gras parades, downtown NOLA itself doesn't have much to offer (other than crime) imo, so you may want to research some of the historic plantation "trails/rides" along the Mississippi heading upriver from New Orleans towards Baton Rouge. From Baton Rouge you can pick up the I-12 east to Slidell and then I-59 to Meridian/Birmingham. FWIW - I stayed in Tuscaloosa on my drive home - more motel/hotel offerings due to UofA, afaik.
Mardi Gras was last week, so NOLA will probably be low key. Probably a good thing...
Where are you staying down there? I would make sure you have a safe spot for your bikes. The roads are TERRIBLE with pot holes, and make NYC streets seem like they are paved in gold, so be careful in the city.
There is a Duc dealer in New Orleans if you have any issues.
I have a few close friends down there and a good lawyer in the city, so if you get into any real trouble feel free to shoot me a PM.
Quote from: DRKWNG on March 17, 2011, 03:17:58 AM
What part of town (DC) are you going to be staying in?
I will be about 10 miles out in rockville MD.
Quote from: Vindingo on March 17, 2011, 08:50:11 AM
Mardi Gras was last week, so NOLA will probably be low key. Probably a good thing...
Where are you staying down there?
I have a few close friends down there and a good lawyer in the city, so if you get into any real trouble feel free to shoot me a PM.
Thanks! Hopefully I wont need to. I was in there for Mardi Gras back when I was attending FSU. It was pretty fun overall. I havent been there when its not mardi gras so i have no idea how its like. Im hoping its much more laid back.
I am going to rework the scheudle with all your recommendations. My friend doesnt want to camp, and he wants to see the shuttle launch too. So I may skip tail of the dragon for the trip back up. He also doenst mind being in new orleans for only a day or two so that gives more time to [moto]
Quote from: muskrat on March 15, 2011, 05:59:15 PM
The Tail of the Dragon is not so bad mid-week but stay away on the weekend.
+1!
Cherohala Skyway
NC 28
Key West Highway (if you are willing to go all the way south)
Quote from: He Man on March 17, 2011, 10:50:02 AM
I will be about 10 miles out in rockville MD.
hit me up with where in Rockville, so we can organize a meet-up spot!!!
Quote from: zooom on March 18, 2011, 07:06:58 AM
hit me up with where in Rockville, so we can organize a meet-up spot!!!
[thumbsup] will do
Sounds like you've got a great plan set out!
If you need anything in the DC area I've got tools and plenty of space (garage and bedrooms).
For the routes, you can take reasonably good roads from the dragon to about mid-Georgia, then everything gets flat and boring and you might as well jump on the slab.
There's not really any great riding or anything else worth mentioning that I know of between FL and LA - I'd slab it and make good time.
My ride report from summer '08 covers the bit from FL to LA (very beginning) and deal's gap to FL (end).
You've probably made the run from NYC to DC before, but if not, there's also not much other than lots of traffic along the way. I've tried running way out west, sticking way east and going right down I-95 for variation. Nowadays I just slab that run, usually overnight or in the wee hours of the morning, to get it over with.
Not to be rude, but why not just toss your plans out the window and just enjoy it as it comes?
because i dont have unlimited amount of time. If i did i would just hit the road and make it there when i make it there, but the shuttle launch is on a tuesday at 7pm. and it is out of our way. everything after the launch and up to the launch is up for grabs, but if i miss the launch then i would of spent a whole day going in that direction for no reason (that direction also has no good roads, its straight superslab territory)